The Summoner's Rebirth: Awaken, Milady

Now that Ilyin was awake, what was the next thing she should do? Approach her, act as if everything that happened prior to this was null and voided? Alena broke into cold sweat as she came to walk towards the ice spirit with slow steps.

"Hello," Alena called out. "We meet again." she gulped a mouthful of saliva before proceeding to reach out her hand to touch the spirit. She took the Ice Spirit's hand and traced it gently with her fingers, feeling the cold surface's temperature penetrate her.

Ilyin looked at the child with her dead and empty eyes. Without letting out a single sound, she raised her head and didn't react to the child's approach. Alena heaved a sigh or relief at this act, because Ilyin showed that she wasn't completely against Alena just by not deflecting her touch in a heartbeat.

"I have a purpose, something that can only be accomplished with your help." Alena continued her plea, bringing up the matter of her purpose.

Ilyin looked at her with inquisitive eyes, as if asking what she was talking about. She was curious, but also extremely wary. Like a tender kitten who was hostile to everybody who approached it, but also had an instinctive desire to try and figure out exactly what this unfamiliar offer was all about.

She knew that something had changed between her and this particular girl. The girl had enacted a process that caused her to be impacted both in her thinking methods and body. Like she was upgraded in an instant. The change was a bit harsh to adapt to, but she managed to do it.

Due to Ilyin not feeling any extreme pain during the Possession, she wasn't that angry at Alena. Considering the factors the spirit had thought about before, too, she was made to feel like the girl was actually not that bad of a person. Whenever the child summoned her, it was always as a form of protection and not because she wanted to do negative stuff. After that day, when Alena made her into a puppet, the child never actually harmed her.

The one who harmed her after that was the child's ability, which worked unconsciously outside of the child's parameters. It was the child's natural reaction towards her attacks, and the ability's characteristic to control her as a puppet.

Although one might say that this change in mindset was way too drastic, there was actually a reason behind it. Ilyin was immature, so her thoughts could frequently change. New discoveries would impact her mind.

The spirit had been stuck in her adolescence stage ever since she was born into the dungeon. She never advanced further.

In truth, this particular reaction could also be attributed to be the result of too much repetitive pain that made Ilyin insensitive to the severity of the tragedy she endured.

In the world, only the strong prevailed. Once you are made to be submissive, it was very hard to climb back up and rise to be in the oppressor's faction. Alena was not a bad master as she had a lot of humanity and truly felt sorry every time she inconvenienced the spirit and angered her. However, for her necessities, she was willing to use the spirit.

As of now, the spirit was beginning to only seek the good parts of Alena. Of course, the child also had negative qualities, but because the spirit was especially looking for the great things, her mind was prone to nothing but positive thoughts.

Alena took in Ilyin's response and continued.

"The Undertaking. It's a process that would allow be to diffuse the curse for the time being. If you cooperate with me, we can come out of this ordeal with less pain, and both you and me will be able to live for a day longer. However, if we both fail, then it would be the end for us. What do you think is going to be your choice?" Alena questioned, extending the offer to the Ice Spirit.

Ilyin looked on with wonder. She docked her head upwards, as if gesturing for Alena to continue wit her words. Ilyin was always attracted to the offer of life. She valued life, just like most living things do. However, life came with a price. Whether it was hardship, pain, or many other contributors that would form up your specific life.

What was the price for Alena's offer? What did she have to pay with if she wanted to continue living as the girl's puppet?

"The Undertaking is.. so to say, like the name suggests, you will take on some the curse's impact and let me divide the burden with you. We will.. trade our spiritual essence. This thing is simple to say, but since you are an elemental spirit yourself, you must know the severity of trading your spiritual essence. I'm asking you to understand our complications.. I know that we don't have the perfect puppeteer relationship ever, but this is for the sake of the two of us and not just me," Alena tried to reason with the spirit.

"I have learned that there will be a possibility of you growing if you stand by me and aid me. As my power grows, I will be able to have more room to relax. I will be able to keep you summoned out in the world more often as my mana increases. You will be benefited if I grow further, and.. you will definitely get more opportunities if I live on,"

Life. It was something that was so terribly important to the two people currently exchanging thoughts in this dark void.

Both of them were so desperate for life, but it was such a fleeting concept to them, who were burdened by the world. They had similarities with each other, and were completely different at the same time.

Alena kept supplying persuasive words as the spirit kept her silence throughout the entire tirade. After a few minutes, it was finally time for the ice spirit to make up her decision and relay it on to Alena.

Using descriptive abilities, Ilyin was finally able to convey that she would be willing to try the process out if the girl properly explained everything that would happen from start to finish. She was slightly afraid since Alena had mentioned pain.

One would naturally react in an adverse manner towards pain. These two were the same, they disliked pain.

Because the spirit gave her permission to start, Alena was naturally spared from having to use force. The process began to light up as Alena strictly followed the things Aria had told her and what she had to be mindful of.

However, in the preparation Aria gave, the elder calculated everything with the assumption that the spirit will not be cooperating at all.

Thus, as they smoothly entered and passed through the stages of the act, the descriptions and warnings Aria gave her became useless. Although, this didn't mean that there was no pain for the two of them. There was still pain from the curse. The curse wasn't erased through their bonding, but it was finally relieved slightly due to Ilyin's essence strengthening Alena's condition as well.

The pain started to divide, and Ilyin received her share. Immediately, she was brought to shock. The pain was much greater than she thought.

Ilyin was amazed by the fact that the girl was even here in the first place, communicating smoothly and acting out her plans. She couldn't possibly imagine how such a little girl was able to bear double the amount of pain she was currently facing. She thought that she had a high pain tolerance, but it was beginning to seem like that wasn't the case.

The girl turned out to have a much higher tolerance than even herself, who had went through several experiences that she thought was extremely traumatic. Those moments where she tortured the child for her own joy's sake, what did the child feel? Compared to her, she was already at least a hundred years old. Her growth was stumped for unknown reasons, as if she was meant to just be an immature Ice Spirit. She had heard from the other spirits that one hundred years old should be enough time to collect elemental energy in order to advance to a higher level due to her connection with the spiritual realm, but it didn't work that way for her.

She was stuck in this 'immature' stage. And even then, she was years above the child. And yet, the child was forced to bear a curse that wasn't even accounted for. She heard her thoughts, so naturally she knew how much the girl loathed the one who gave her the condition and that she had repeatedly asked herself what she had done in order to be this way. Not being able to live like a normal human being in fear that her condition will relapse and she would have no one to turn to, and she won't be strong enough to resist the invitation to the gates of heaven.